Regional prep sports roundups: Aug. 31

Baldwin’s volleyball team entered Saturday’s Frontier League Invitational seeded eight with few expectations. That changed by day’s end when the Bulldogs pulled off a third-place finish, going 2-1 in pool play against De Soto, Basehor-Linwood and Ottawa. After a loss to Louisburg, Baldwin recovered to avenge its prior defeat to De Soto, winning 2-1 (25-17, 18-25, 25-21) behind the leadership of players like Katie Pattrick and Morgan Lober. The Bulldogs were 4-5 after Tuesday’s 1-2 showing in Bonner Springs against the Braves, Basehor-Linwood and Eudora.

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Baldwin High football season begins 7 p.m. Friday at home against Wellsville. The Bulldogs went 6-4 in 2011 and return four all-league players to a team that finished as 4A district runners up. Included in that bunch is honorable mention All-State quarterback Chad Berg. Senior tight end Dayton Valentine and senior center Austin Chavez also return after earning postseason honors last year.

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Boys soccer opened the season on Aug. 24 against fellow 2011 state qualifier Tonganoxie. Two quick second-half goals by juniors Russell Cloon and Alec Petry (assisted by junior Nick Joslyn) gave the Bulldogs a 2-1 victory.

Basehor

Trey Kincheloe wasted little time getting on the board this season, scoring four goals in the Bobcats’ first two boys soccer games. Kincheloe’s hat trick led a Basehor-Linwood 6-0 victory against Maranatha Christian Academy on Aug. 24. Sean Potter, Tanner Brown and Caleb Wilson also added scores while Zach Ferguson notched three assists.

The Bobcats hit a speed bump on Tuesday at Bishop Miege, who handed them a 2-1 defeat. Kincheloe’s first-half penalty kick provided the Bobcats their lone score.

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After starting the season 0-5 at the Frontier League Invitational, Basehor-Linwood’s volleyball team went 2-1 in Bonner Springs.

Basehor-Linwood began the night with a 2-0 victory against Bonner Springs (25-19, 31-29) before coming up short against Eudora (25-15, 23-25, 19-25). Basehor-Linwood ended the night with a 2-0 victory against Baldwin (25-18, 25-21).

Basehor-Linwood kicks off football season at 7 p.m. Friday against Bishop Ward. The Bobcats must replace quarterback Colin Murphy, wide receiver Ryan Murphy and linebacker Jesse Hiss from a team that has won the Kaw Valley League in consecutive years. Seniors Tanner Garver and Zac Hevel will split time at quarterback and wide receiver while also playing defensive back. Tight end/defensive lineman Ben Johnson, who committed to Kansas University earlier this year, will be looked upon to draw double coverage on offense while creating opening for other receivers.

Bonner Springs

The Braves volleyball team maintained its focus on the future after falling 0-3 against Baldwin, Basehor-Linwood and Eudora on Tuesday. First-year coach Jan Madlock brings a wealth of experience to the program, having won the 6A state title at Olathe Northwest and coached at Avila University. Seniors Haley Hoffine, Cassady Holloway and Jene’ Williams lead a young squad that features five underclassmen.

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Senior Nick Korosec’s first-half goal had the Braves poised to began their season with a 1-0 victory until Tonganoxie junior Evan Stilgenbauer fired a shot from 50 yards out in the final seconds, forcing overtime. Tonganoxie senior Matt Saathoff received a pass from Zack Tallent in extra time and beat Bonner Springs goalkeeper Dominic Salvino to send the home team away disappointed. The Braves returned to action at Free State on Thursday.

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Bonner Springs football begins its season on the road against league foe Turner at 7 p.m. Friday. The Braves made a commitment to the weight room this summer, bulking up at nearly every position. Returning behind center this season is junior quarterback Jordan Jackson, who threw for 1,393 yards with 17 touchdowns and just one interception as a sophomore.

De Soto

De Soto sophomore Brittani Jenson won the Cat Classic Golf Tournament on Wednesday at Alvamar Golf Course in Lawrence, leading her De Soto/Mill Valley girls golf team to a first-place finish in the process. Jenson shot a 79 in the par-72 event. Mill Valley senior Hadley Tharp placed eighth with a 95. De Soto/Mill Valley shot a combined 378 to place ahead of Hayden (407) and Silver Lake (412). The team will next compete at 12 p.m. on Sept. 4 in the Piper Invitational at Dub’s Dread Golf Course in Kansas City, Kan.

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The Wildcats begin their bid for a fifth-straight football playoff appearance at 7 p.m. Friday at Holton, selected by many as the top team in 4A. Senior defensive lineman Austin Reinertsen is De Soto’s only returning player to earn postseason honors. He’ll be joined on defense by fellow seniors Jake Price, Noah Cardiff, Corbin Clark, Zack Griffiths, Brent Johnson and Caleb Ray. Clark will also reprise his role as starting quarterback for the Wildcats, who went 6-4 in 2011.

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De Soto’s volleyball team opened its season on Saturday in the Frontier League Invitational. The Wildcats went 3-0 in pool play, defeating Baldwin (20-25, 25-23, 26-24), Ottawa (25-21, 25-19) and Basehor-Linwood (25-16, 25-17). De Soto finished fourth overall after falling in the winners’ bracket to Paola (24-26, 20-25) and Baldwin (17-25, 25-18, 21-25). On Tuesday, the Wildcats lost to Wellsville, Osawatomie and Olathe Northwest to bring their record 3-5 entering Thursday.

Eudora

Eudora fall sports began Saturday at the Frontier League Invitational volleyball tournament. The Cardinals went 1-4 with a victory against Basehor-Linwood.

On Tuesday, the Cardinals turned in a much-improved showing in a quad meet at Bonner Springs, going 3-0 to even their record on the season.

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On Tuesday, boys soccer began the year with a 4-0 defeat to Ottawa. It returned to action at home on Thursday against Paola. Also on Thursday, cross-country began its season at the Anderson County Invitational.

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Eudora football gets things started at 7 p.m. Friday at Piper. In 2011, the Cardinals went 12-2 (6-0 in the Frontier League) en route to a 4A state title game appearance. Coach Gregg Webb brings back senior running back/linebacker Gabe Cleveland (1,100 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns; 97 tackles). Junior Andrew Ballock will move from wide receiver to quarterback. Tanner Tornedon (5-11, 160 pounds) transferred from Lawrence and will look to be a factor in the receiving corps.

Shawnee

Tasked with replacing all six starters on a team that won its fourth-straight 4A state volleyball title in 2011, St. James Academy coach Nancy Dorsey is simply reloading.

The Thunder defeated No. 3-ranked 6A Gardner-Edgerton (22-25, 25-19, 25-23) on Saturday in the final game of the Metro Sports Volleyball Slam. The match also served as the debut of freshman Audriana Fitzmorris (7 kills, 4 solo blocks) who was the youngest member of this summer’s U.S. Youth National Team. On Tuesday, St. James defeated a senior-laden Blue Springs South team in five sets (25-23, 17-25, 21-25, 25-18, 15-13) to advance to 2-0 on the season. Junior middle Audrey Wenski had 21 kills to lead the Thunder, and Fitzmorris led the way with 11 blocks.

Shawnee Mission Northwest will begin the season with first-year football coach Linn Hibbs, who will make his 6A debut against the returning Gene Weir of Olathe North at 7 p.m. on Friday at SM South District Stadium. Hibbs previously spent 15 seasons at 4A Wellington, where he went 116-54.

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Kaw Valley League favorites Mill Valley begin their season on the road at 6A Manhattan at 7 p.m. Friday. The Jaguars seek to improve on a 7-4 2011 behind the arm of junior quarterback Skyler Windmiller (2,128 passing yards, 25 touchdowns in 2011) and legs of senior rusher Kendall Short (847 total yards in 2011).

Tonganoxie

Tonganoxie High seniors Jenny Whitledge and Bret Shelton received the Elliot Heart Award on Aug. 23 at an assembly at the THS auditorium. The award is named for Jeremy Elliot, a multi-sport athlete who died from a heart condition as a Chieftain junior in 2009. Whitledge is active with the THS volleyball, basketball and track and field teams, while Shelton plays football and baseball. — Justin Nutter, jnutter@theworldco.info

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Tonganoxie begins its campaign under first-year head coach Al Troyer, who hopes to improve the Chieftains 1-8 record from 2011. Junior running backs Shane Levy (431 yards) and Cole Holloway return (105 yards against Bishop Ward) while junior quarterback/defensive back Tyler Ford looks to lead Tonganoxie’s offense. The Chieftains kick off the season at 7 p.m. on Friday at Lansing.